Football has become a national phenomenon in America. Every week, Thursday through Monday night, there is a live game on, and if not, a replay of a game that happened a few days before. People in America love it. No matter where they are from, most people will always enjoy a good football game. Some people like college football and some professional, but either way it is football.

I grew up in a household where watching the New Orleans Saints was just as important as getting an A on a test in school. I have grown up to have the same passion as my parents, and whether they win or lose on Sunday determines my mood for Monday. LSU games are always watched, but not as intently. When neither a Saints or LSU game is on, the television is still playing some football game. It brings my family together and that is one of the reasons I think we love it so much, and why other people love it so much as well. It brings people together. But what a lot of people ask themselves is it worth millions and billions of dollars?

In America, being involved in professional sports is the top-paid job. Most NFL players get paid more than Wall Street Executives. Is that the way it is suppose to be? In the 2009 season, the New York Giants had the biggest pay roll with 140 million dollars. Of course there is a difference with each team, but the lowest paid team still has the big bucks. There are also things that are added to each player's salary including endorsement deals and signing bonuses. Peyton Manning is the reigning player with the biggest pay check. His check from the Colts was 15.8 million dollars and another 15 million from endorsement deals in 2009. To realize how much this really is, the average salary of Americans is $43,460. So even the smallest paid NFL player is way ahead of most average Americans.

When it comes to the amount, each player and coach signs a contract for a certain amount of dollars and years they will get. No matter how well they play or what they do for the team, they already know how much they are going to get paid. The players should sign a contract to know they will be with a specific team, but not about money. They should get paid after the season based on their performance. There could be a minimum amount that each player will always get, and depending on what happens each year, it will get added too. Some players who get injured are getting paid just as much as the players who are still playing everyday, is that fair?

NFL coaches do not make as much as the players, but still are high up there. The highest paid coach is Mike Holmgren of the Seattle Seahawks who has an annual compensation package of $8,000,000 while the lowest paid coach is Lane Kiffin of the Oakland Raiders whose salary is $1,250,000. This is a big difference of 7 million dollars, but $1,250,000 is still a large check to have. Is coaching a football team worth this much money? Or is being the quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts really worth 30 million dollars?

The answer is no. Nothing is worth that much money, but somehow the NFL has become worth that much. It has revenues of more than 9 billion dollars a year. This past spring, the players and owners were going head to head about money. The owners to NFL teams make the most, most of them being billionaires. The owners needed more money for stadiums and such so they wanted to take away from the players. They were not going to budge. The players wanted that money, and no one was going to take it. This lead to freight of not having a 2011 NFL season. Can you imagine what the American people would do without the NFL season? People would be furious. The players have gotten so in over their heads, they were not even thinking about their fans. They are so worried about it they were not concerned about the thousands of people they would upset when they already have millions. How can someone ask and want more money when they are already making more than imaginable every year?

As a football fan, I realize not having a season would definitely put a damper on my year, but maybe it would be a good thing. Everyone involved in professional football needs to take a step back and evaluate what they have for just waking up and playing a game every day. Most Americans are working extremely hard and barely paying their bills these days. It is hard to watch people struggle to support their families the way they want, when people in the NFL never have to worry about anything and complain about it.

Football is an American staple and it always will be. Most Americans cannot imagine life without it, but do believe it has become worth too much money. It started off as something people could just enjoy together, and has turned in to the most expensive business in the nation. The players, coaches, and owners should not be taking for granted what they have. They should not be getting paid that much, but they are. Will it ever go back to being about the passion to play and not the money? As of right now, no one knows.